Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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161. To ask the Minister for Finance the way in which the proposed dividend of €250 million from the State’s holding in a bank (details supplied) announced in March will impact on fiscal space for 2018; the impact the proposed sale of the bank will have on this dividend; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21979/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) holds the AIB shares on behalf of the State. Dividend payments are therefore made to the ISIF. Payments from the ISIF to the Exchequer arising from the proceeds of the disposal of the State's shareholdings in the Banks are provided for under the NTMA (Amendment) Act 2014. This legislation allows the Minister to direct the Agency to make such payments after having consulted the Agency.  

Regarding proceeds from dividends, these are typically recorded as property income in the European System of Accounts (ESA) framework. Therefore any dividend payments would be recorded as General Government Revenue and, as such, would improve the General Government Balance. However, the payment of any dividend is exclusively a matter for the board and management of AIB based on the bank’s financial performance and future prospects, and subject to regulatory approval. As such, it is not classed as a discretionary revenue measure and, as the Deputy is aware, has no impact on the fiscal space for 2018.

The proposed dividend will be payable on 9 May 2017 to holders of ordinary shares on the Company’s register of members at close of business on 24 March 2017. Therefore, any proposed sale of the State’s shares in AIB later this year will have no impact on the payment of 99.9% of this dividend to the State.